Budget Killer – Beauty Services

I used to go to a high end salon where I paid $60 per haircut. But after a few mediocre haircuts and an awful first experience getting my hair colored, I switched to a higher end salon near my office where I paid $90 per haircut (but stuck to coloring my hair at home from a box). It wasn’t until I pulled out my wallet to pay for my latest haircut at the overpriced salon that they informed me my stylist’s prices had gone up – to $120! I was flabbergasted. I asked why they didn’t tell me about the enormous price increase when I scheduled the appointment, and the woman said “well we increased our prices a month ago, I would have thought you’d already known about it.” I call bullshit. It was just terrible service. But terrible service aside, the place doesn’t take credit cards, and I didn’t bring enough cash to pay the bill and leave my stylist a decent tip, so I ended up having to stiff my stylist and leave him a crappy tip.

That experience was about 2 1/2 years ago now, and I’ve only had one $12 haircut since (more on that tomorrow). My fiancé will say it was at his request that I grew out my short hair, but it’s mostly because I was a lost child without a salon. But now my long hair looks beautiful, and it’s saving me a ton of money! And yet every time I walk by that salon, it’s full of people willing to pay $120 for a haircut and god knows what for color.

Hair salons aren’t the only budget killer, though. The number of businesses dedicated to charging women an arm and a leg to make them feel more beautiful is astounding. Manicures and pedicures, waxing, laser hair removal, facials, tanning beds, these are some of the common beauty services that many women get on a routine basis. And they’re all bogus. The entire beauty industry is designed to make you feel like if you don’t have the perfect hair, don’t have your nails painted, don’t wear makeup, have a few stray hairs, you’re not trying hard enough to look beautiful. You won’t land that job, you won’t find a man, you won’t fit in. And it’s all your fault.

Well I say “screw them!” You know what makes me feel a lot happier than having the perfect image? Having the confidence that if I don’t look perfect, I can still face the day. Knowing that my fiancé and my friends love me for the person I am, not what I look like. Oh yea, and having money in the bank.

Ladies, it’s time to be happy with who you are, and not let your value depend on what you look like. The occasional beauty treatment for a special occasion is one thing, but no more regular trips to the spa so someone can charge you $80 to put mud on your face! And whoever said “beauty is pain” was selling propaganda. Stop paying someone to rip the hairs from your bikini area. You should be getting paid for that kind of pain, not paying for it. As long as you’re convinced that you need all those beauty services to look and feel beautiful, you will keep throwing money down the drain. Go cold turkey, learn to be happy with who you are, and watch the money pile up in your bank account.

2 Responses to Budget Killer – Beauty Services

“You should be getting paid for that kind of pain, not paying for it.” Love that, and isn’t it the truth! Beauty totally is a budget killer. I used to spend a crazy amount on money on dying my hair and getting expensive cuts. Truth of the matter is, my hair doesn’t look any better or worse, now that I went natural and get $30 cuts.